Watch Black Thought Recite The First Bars He Ever Wrote

In a new interview, the Roots MC charts his career in hip-hop, sharing influences, and projections of where rap's heading next.

Black Thought is the latest guest on Kxng Crooked's Crook's Corner podcast.

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For his run with the Slaughterhouse rapper, Thought covers a lot of ground. The chat commences with a break down of his quarantined creative process and how he's adapting to writing at home instead of the brick-and-mortar studios he's frequented throughout his career. He moves on to a quick primer of his current acting slate, including an upcoming off-Broadway debut in an adaptation of Harlem Renaissance satire, Black No More, and hopes of securing more theater, TV, and film work in the years ahead.

After a thorough update on current projects, Thought pivots to the past, listing Kool G Rap, Schooly D, Rakim, KRS-One, and Chuck D, as the rappers who had the heaviest impact on him as a young developing MC. He even recites the very first bars he ever wrote and committed to memory. Angling towards the future, the Roots rapper projects a waning threshold for objectively terrible music and a "reemergence of thought-provoking material."

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Watch Black Thought's full interview with Kxng Crooked below.